The End of an Argument
by Shirekat
Summary: ScoRose Post-Hogwarts - Scorpius goes to America on a job but leaves in the middle of an argument with Rose.


A/N: This is for Round 11 of Season 5 of the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition. The prompt this round for my position was losing someone/thign on a windy day or winning someone/thing on a rainy night. I clearly went with the latter.

My optional prompts were 1. (song) "Let it All Go" - Birdy and RHODES, 2. (emotion) bitterness, and 10, (emotion) melancholy.

* * *

Scorpius usually loved the rain. He had never understood why it made others feel melancholy. He had always felt his best when it was raining, which made it particularly frustrating that he couldn't fall asleep in his room at the Stormy Witch's Bed and Breakfast in Seattle, Washington. He would have liked to say that it was because he was so far from home, but that wasn't really the truth. He and Rose had had an argument before he left. He missed her in his bed, sleeping next to him, as they had done since the fall after they graduated from Hogwarts, when they had gotten their first place together.

That seemed ages ago, though it had been, in reality, less than a year. Scorpius thought bitterly of the last night they had spent together, up arguing until he had to leave with his suitcase and his umbrella in the light of pre-dawn, scowling at the love of his life in their doorway. She gave as good as she got. Her face was pale except for her pink nose, stuffy from crying, and her bushy red eyebrows were furrowed as she said, "Goodbye," before slamming the door in his face.

He had argued that he should take the job he'd been offered in America, because it was only for six months, and it was more money than he could ever hope to make in that amount of time at home. She argued that if he wanted to be with her, he would _be_ with her for Merlin's sake, and not go tramping across the Wizarding World. He _didn't_ mention that he was doing it so he could make enough to properly propose to her. He also didn't mention that the money would be enough for a down-payment on a house near where she grew up, close to her parents and her grandparents. Rose had been talking about how she wanted lots of children, like her grandmother, and the place had seven bedrooms.

No, he hadn't told her about that because he was the biggest idiot in England—no, clearly he was the biggest idiot in the world. They hadn't spoken in weeks, and Scorpius was beginning to worry that there would be someone new in her life when he got back. He knew she was beautiful, and even when they were out together, someone was always asking her out.

 _For people who melded together over time like we did, I don't know why we need to break so hard,_ he thought to himself as he stared at the ceiling, _Why do we break so hard?_

Suddenly, there was a knock at the front door. Scorpius jumped. "Mrs. Lelling? Mrs. Gorner?" He called out the names of the two witches who owned the establishment, but he hardly expected them to hear him over the rain. When he failed to hear any footsteps on the landing which would signal that the proprietors were awake and going to answer the door, he put on a coat and stomped downstairs himself.

"Hi there," he said to the dark figure shivering under an umbrella outside, "Come on in. I'll get the Stormy Witches. They're probably asleep, though it's Merlin's guess how, with all this rain."

The bundle snorted, or sneezed, and passed the threshold, but as Scorpius turned to call the two women who owned the Bed and Breakfast, a very familiar voice told him, "Don't bother. I'll just bunk with you…if that's all right?"

He turned around to find Rose hanging the last of her coats neatly up on the coat tree. She was sopping wet, wearing rather a shapeless dress and wellingtons. Her hair was dripping on the floor and she sounded like she'd caught a cold, but it was definitely her. He was struck by how beautiful she was.

"Rose," he said in disbelief.

She cleared her throat and looked rather sheepish. "Scorpius," she said very formally. He knew what was coming. She would always practice her apology speeches when she had had an argument with Albus. Scorpius had just never heard his own name in that tone.

"I haven't been able to sleep at night because of what I said to you, and because I've been waiting on you to say something real. But, I realized I had to come, because I missed you." She sniffed. "And I love you, and I was a fool to let you go without knowing that."

Then the floodwaters broke and she was sobbing, with her head in her hands, and it was all Scorpius could do to lead her up the stairs and into his room, alternately whispering in her ear and shouting over her sobs, "I love you too, Rose! I'm such an idiot! I'm so sorry!"

She was clearly miserable, past her emotional distress, and it took several minutes for Scorpius to coax her to get out her wand and perform a drying spell on her hair.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry," he told her, "It's ok. We'll talk about it in the morning."

Eventually he managed to get her out of her wet clothes and tossed her a shirt of his to sleep in. She was still sniffling and sneezing and honestly, if he could take care of her like this for the rest of their lives, he would be happy.

When he came out of the bathroom having hung her wet clothes over the shower curtain rod, however, she seemed to have recovered, and was standing in the middle of the room, hands on her belly, looking at him expectantly with a sheepish smile on her face.

He stared at her, uncomprehending. "What's wrong?" he said.

"What's _wrong_?" she repeated. "I'm _pregnant,_ Scorpius. I thought it was obvious by now. I'd known for two whole months by the time you left."

Now that she said something, he could see that she was, indeed, pregnant, and he approached her reverently, kneeling down and staring at her swollen belly, his mouth open and his eyes wide.

"Well, say something!" she finally snapped at him, "For Merlin's sake, are you happy? Are you angry? Is it too early? Is it too late? What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking," Scorpius said, shifting his position so he was on one knee and taking both of her hands, "Will you marry me?"

"Oh! Are you—are you on one knee? I can't see you over the baby."

He stood up and kissed her on the lips, then said again, "Will you marry me?"

Her eyes went very soft and she said, "Oh, Scorpius, I… _wait a minute!_ "

"What? What is it?"

"Are you saying this because of the baby?"

"Yes!" he said proudly, before he realized it was the wrong thing to say, "I mean, no. I mean, I was going to ask you anyway, but I was going to wait until the job was over because I was going to buy you a ring and buy us a house with the money I made here. But it seemed like the thing to do, and I wouldn't take it back for the world!"

Rose laughed for the first time since before he had left, "Good, because I won't let you!"

She kissed him on the lips, cupping his face in her hands, and when he had her under the covers and in his arms, he had no trouble falling asleep.


End file.
